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Christianity
Christianity is a human religion founded upon the teachings of Jesus Christ, whom the Bible records as being the only begotten Son of God and the Savior of all mankind, who has died on the cross for the sins of the world and has risen from the dead the third day to offer eternal life for those who believe in Him. It is a religion that emphasizes the virtues of righteousness through the obedience of God's commandments, including those of showing mercy and charity, and commonly depicts an eternal reward of heaven for the faithful and righteous and of hell for the unbelieving and wicked. Although monotheistic in nature, its God is present in three coexistent forms that make up the Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Rituals The most common form of ritual in Christianity is the attendance of a worship service on a weekly basis, which in Catholicism is called a Mass. The priest or pastor of a church leads the congregation in worship, to pray for blessings and forgiveness of sins upon himself and the congregation, and to engage its members in the practice of holy communion. Private prayer times are often encouraged with no specific set time of the day for them, as well as study of the Bible for guidance and comfort. In Catholicism, those who are called to seek service unto God as priests, monks, friars, or nuns are required to take vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience unto themselves and are secluded within monasteries or convents for their training. Special observance days within Christianity include Christmas, Ash Wednesday, Lent, Palm Sunday, Easter, and Pentecost, which may be celebrated at the discretion of the denomination that the Christian belongs to. Some Christians may also incorporate the observance days of Judaism such as Passover instead of the traditional Easter celebration. One of the most common prayers in Christianity is referred to as The Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13), which is as follows: Our Father in Heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your Kingdom come, Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, And forgive us our debts As we forgive our debtors, And lead us not into temptation But deliver us from the evil one, For Yours is the Kingdom and the power And the glory forever. Amen In the comic books and cartoon show Though Christianity is rarely if ever depicted in any of the Smurfs stories, with most of its emphasis being on nature worship and magic, its concept of heaven and hell were used in the cartoon episode "Heavenly Smurfs" when the Smurfs fool Gargamel into thinking he has been sent to his final judgment and must now make amends for all the evil he has done. In the comic book story "The Egg And The Smurfs", one Smurf was sent to hell by another Smurf who wished for that Smurf to go to hell, only to later be removed from hell when Papa Smurf had undone all the wishes his little Smurfs had wished for. Papa Smurf's behavior towards Gargamel in regards to saving him in times of peril reflects the Christian attitude of showing mercy even unto the most undeserving recipients. Some Smurf stories have thematic elements that parallel those of Christian Bible stories, particularly the cartoon show episodes. In "Bigmouth's Friend", Clockwork Smurf bravely sacrifices himself while dealing with a giant machine created by Gargamel and Lord Balthazar in a manner similar to King David's confrontation with Goliath the Gittite. In "Blue Eyes Returns", the Smurfs deal with a flood created by Gargamel's magic beans similar to the one created by God to destroy His unfaithful creation in the time of Noah, whose family was the only one to escape the flood by building an ark. The human customs of Christmas and Valentine's Day are usually considered Christian holidays, while heterosexual marriage is considered a traditional Christian virtue in that it was intended for humans to create families through which the virtues of godliness can be instilled upon future generations. Empath: The Luckiest Smurf stories Tapper Smurf is one of the few Smurf characters depicted in the series as being a Christian, though the extent of his beliefs is uncertain as he also adheres to particular elements of the Smurfs' own belief system, or at least has done so on certain occasions. His first encounter with that religion came when he ran away from the Smurf Village as a young Smurfling, not trusting in Papa Smurf being able to lead an entire village full of young Smurflings, when he fell into a raging river and would have perished had not an angel named Agnes saved him and left behind a book called the Holy Scriptures. From there his personal faith began to grow, believing that Jesus Christ died not only for the sins of mankind but also for all of God's creation, although it would not be until sometime after Empath's final departure from Psychelia that his Christian faith would be greater than that of the faith of his own people. As a whole, it appears mostly with a few characters that the Smurfs meet, such as Sister Leiliana and Meredith, the latter of whom misuses her religion as a personal crusade to hunt down mages. Benedictus was a traveling missionary who was mistaken for being a Christian, but was actually a Viperion whose "god" was Lucifer. Tapper's wife Siobhan became a Christian before they were married, and his two friends Barber and Sweepy became Christians during the years that they were together. One of the elements emphasized in the EMPATH story series concerning Christianity is that of sexual morality, where the Smurf characters deal with temptation of intimacy with either sex, including its main character Empath. Tapper believes that all creatures, including Smurfs, should remain virgins until marriage, and, as with the Bible's teachings, that any form of sexual orientation outside of the norm that God has established is considered sinful, though it does teach that are some people are "made eunuchs" (with no desire for physical intimacy) at birth, which suggests that asexuality is acceptable. Despite the views against homosexuality expressed by the Christians in the story series, they are at least in agreement that harassment of homosexuals or people of alternate sexualities is unacceptable and goes against the tenets of their religion, which advocates making peace with all people so that they would be more receptive to hearing the gospel. While Catholicism is the most dominant form of Christianity among the humans in the story series, Tapper and the Smurfs that become Christians do not identify themselves as being Catholic, since most of what they were taught about the faith was straight from God Himself. Tapper does have a Catholic friend who is the human priest Father Doyle, whom he seeks when he and his Smurfette counterpart Siobhan desired to be married as believers. Existing mainstream human characters who appear in this series as Catholic include Dame Barbara and Mrs. Sourberry. Known Christians in the story series * Tapper Smurf * Barber Smurf * Sweepy Smurf * Duncan McSmurf * Clumsy Smurf * Grouchy Smurf, who was later renamed Asher upon his conversion * Poet Smurf * Natural Smurf * Slouchy Smurf * Siobhan Smurfette * Heather Smurfette * Fiona Smurfette * Meaghan Smurfette * Nehemiah Smurf * Father Doyle * Mrs. Sourberry * Dame Barbara Glovey Story The character Aksel Smurf in the Glovey Smurf story series has been raised as a Christian by monks who have found him as a baby Smurf. During his stay with his fellow Smurfs, he finds himself at odds with Aasif Smurf and his wife Aneeqa, who are followers of Islam. Hero: The Guardian Smurf stories The character Abloec Smurf in the HERO: The Guardian Smurf story series is identified as being a Christian. His first encounter with the religion is with his meeting the human priest Reverend Lovejoy when he was 100 years old, and following that meeting on that night, an angel appeared and gave him a book called the Holy Scriptures. His Grey Smurf counterpart, however, seems to be purposely making a mockery of the original version's faith, claiming that he had given his blessings toward the Grey Smurf Hero's three-way marriage relationship with the Grey Smurf Smurfette and Wonder. Abloec's wife Serana and his two children also became Christians over time. LD Stories/Expanded AU In The Light and Dark Series, which crosses over with the Expanded Animated Universe, Catholicism is the dominant form of Christianity that is worshiped among the humans. The King's Court The members of the King's court -- including Johan, Peewit, Dame Barbara, and Savina -- have been raised with Catholic values, which are, for the most part, an extension on ethical and moral goodness. They do not believe in persecuting people for their looks, values/beliefs, or social status; instead, they are encouraged to learn from each other's differences and focus on their moral compass to determine if they are friend or foe. King Gerard's Court King Gerard is loosely Catholic, but prefers to consider himself Agnostic. While admitting that there may be a higher power, he is not quite certain, so he and Clockwork prefer to live simply as good people trying to do what they believe is right for his kingdom. His nanny and mentor, Mrs. Sourberry, is a devoted Catholic and has tried to influence his majesty so he may follow suit, but has not had much luck. Still, she recognizes his good deeds and believes his soul is pure. Category:Religions Category:Customs of other races Category:Open to Community Category:Personal beliefs